Sunday 30 July 2006 - Brisbane

After my Duyfken visit I returned home then Darryl & I went cycling to look at some of the houses that family had lived in.

First stop was 1 Ricardo Street, Kelvin Grove. This house is called 'Coolgarra' and is the house the Grandpa and Grandma Anderson owned from 1948 to 1957. I took some photos from the outside before knocking on the door and discovering that the current owners are John and Maureen Murphy. John kindly invited me inside and I was astounded to see, that although it looks just like a Queenslander from the outside, the inside is quite remarkable. I was wondering if they knew that the name of the house was Coolgarra, as an old photo from Grandma showed a sign outside, but the moment I walked in the front door I knew that they were aware of it. Across the front door is a neoclassical with the name in huge letters. This is balanced by a similar feature across the front window. The inside verandah wall has large tiled feature panels - all unlike anything else I have ever seen. The ceilings have intricate plaster-work, and the Murphy's have decorated it in a style which matches the house style. I can see why Grandma loved this house, and was unhappy about leaving it to live at Fingal.

After viewing this house, we headed off the Arthur Terrace in Red Hill, where the Melchert's lived while in Brisbane. On the way there we passed Red Hill Fish Shop and since it was lunch time, settled down to some lovely fish and chips. Arthur Terrace was a disappointment, more due to the fact that is is over 1km long and I really didn't have any idea what number house I was looking for. I will have to do more research before returning!

We then rode down the buzzing Caxton Street and past Suncorp Stadium before heading to the bikeway along the river, back through the botanic gardens and home.

Today has been a lovely relaxing day. Graham and Diane Smith picked us up mid-morning and we experienced a beautiful brunch at the New Farm Deli, before strolling through New Farm Park and then touring nearby streets checking out all the apartments.